Luminescence ✺ Arthur Pendragon

Aithusa [1]

The night sky loomed over Camelot, covered in thick and dark clouds from which rain continued to pour relentlessly. The main area of the physicians' chamber was lit up with candles in all corners, the only dark space being within the bedroom where the Ambrosius siblings slept. Or rather, were trying to.

"You know," Merlin groaned out in despair, making Arwen sigh as she had just started letting the rain lull her into sleep. "When the whole idea of revealing your identity came up, I was quite looking forward to having my own room." To continue on with his dramatics, Merlin went as far as pulling his pillow over his head in an attempt to drown out the noise.

"Merlin, I can't really control the rain, can I?" Arwen rolled her eyes at the ceiling, knowing he didn't actually mind her staying here even if she had been assigned lavish royal chambers within the palace.

"I'm not talking about the rain."

"Then what are you talking about?"

"You didn't hear that?"

The duo continued to go on back and forth, Arwen about to scold her brother for thinking his dreams were a reality when a sudden voice caught both of their attention. "Hello, Gaius." For a moment, they shared a look between themselves, both clearly trying to check whether the other had heard it too. Until whoever it was spoke again. "Surely you remember me?"

Curiously, Arwen now sat up in her bed, fully awake again as her eyes looked to the door of the room, watching as the light seeping through the cracks in the wood moved and changed as someone passed along. "Only too well." It was Gaius' voice which sounded this time, and Arwen didn't need to be able to see the expression on his face to be able to know just from his tone how displeased he must've looked by the visitor in the middle of the night. "Why are you here?"

"I'm getting closer." Merlin announced without hesitation, throwing away his blankets as he jumped out of bed the second his legs were free. Moving over to the door, he wasn't even remotely surprised as his sister joined him, the two of them now looking through the cracks in an attempt to see and hear what was going on better.

"Please, I could do with drying myself by your fire." Arwen finally managed to catch a glimpse of the stranger as he moved through the physicians' chambers now. His hair, though matted down with the rain, appeared thick and somewhat long, as did his unshaven face.

"You have a nerve coming back here." Gaius, who never actually welcomed the man to his hearth, frowned at his back as he continued his scolding. "You left me in a lot of trouble."

"Yeah. Yeah, sorry about that." Judging by his tone, the man didn't sound entirely genuine in his apology. "What can I say? Execution...didn't really appeal to me." And the sarcasm which followed it made that fact much clearer. "Don't pretend you supported Uther."

But his lack of remorse wasn't the first thing Arwen latched on to. "Sorcerer?" She whispered quietly over to her brother, trying to guess what the ongoing conversation was indicating. While he couldn't be too sure either, Merlin still nodded his head as his own suspicions quite aligned with his sister's.

"Tell me why you are here." Gaius demanded, not bothering to indulge the man from his past in his reminiscent spiels. However, his question was met with silence as, instead of answering, the man proceeded to pull something out of his bag.

From where they were, neither Merlin nor Arwen could get a good look at the object, only momentarily glimpsing a flash of gold as it was hit by the candlelight. But luckily, the man himself spoke again to reveal what the item was. "Save your eyesight, Gaius." He said after the physician took it from him and started to examine the object with intent. "It's the Triskelion of Ashkanar."